Summer crush

Spike Rooh Afza with spices and tease lassi with a dash of vanilla seeds—India’s traditional summer coolers get a contemporary twist this season, finds SONAL VED

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If you’re a true ’90s child growing up almost anywhere in India, there’s no way you would have missed gulping down glasses of reddish-pink syr- upy Rooh Afza as the mercury outside soared. I remember pouring the thick rose con- centrate into a glass and diluting ice-cold water on hot summer afternoons, even as my few adventurous cousins sour- punched dash of lemon. This is my ﬁrst memory of sherbets.

Traditionally made using mulled rose petals, rose sherbet is just one example of the endless array of Indian summer drinks. “The subcontinent, with its tropical, humid climate, has led to many innovative cooling drinks. In the south, you will find neer mor, a type of buttermilk,and nam manglak, a basil seedspeckled drink; in the west, there is aam panna, chaas and shikanji…The list goes on,” says chef Paul Kinny of Mumbai’s 212 All Good. As the Indian summer kicks in, here’s how to upgrade your traditional cooling concoctions for modern times.

MIX AND MATCHGive a spin to classic summer drinks by adding newer fl avours. “Enhance shikanji with freshly mulled blueberries, and add to that a spoonful of chia seeds. You can also elevate the garden-varietylemonade by adding dehydrated lime bitters to it. Similarly, lassi can turn into a gourmet smoothie with additions such as Madagascar vanilla bean and raw cacao nibs,”suggests Kinny.

MELTING POTApart from being thirst quenchers, sherbets, made of white rose, fennelseeds or betel leaves, are good for the body, too. “Bael (wood apple) orfalsa (Indian blackberry) sherbets are loaded with vitamins, aid digestionand detoxify,” says Keerti Sheoran, director of Homeburps.com, a label that specialises in organic, handmade squashes.

TOP UP

Aman Dua, head mixologist at MasalaBar and Farzi Café, offers tips on making Indian drinks rise and shine

• Mix beetroot juice with water and freeze in an ice tray to make coloured ice cubes. • Rim glassware with salt mixed with dry mango powder or Indian candy powder. • Use cooling ingredients such as cumin, saffron, coriander seeds and fennel seeds to infuse sugar syrup.• Use hollowed fruits to serve drinks.

Copyright:

STOCKFOOD/DINODIA

EDITED BY MEGHA MAHINDRU,Photographed by ADIL HASAN

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